Posted By Jim Walker
Did anyone watch this on TV last night?

How can Bristol (or wherever) get away with allowing contractors to wallow in raw sewage without any controls in place?

If this were a commercial organisation the HSE would come down like a ton of bricks.

Posted By Dave Wilson
As an ex EHO local government workers and WA people are exposed to this all the time, exactly what kind of safety measures do you envisage when dealing with this stuff.

In london people walk around in this allday!

Remember you are only inches away from millions of gallons every day in the sewers.

I would recommend a visit to a sewage works to understand what exactly is entailed here.

Posted By Ian Mycroft
I've seen a few of these programes shot in various cities and unfortunately Bristol is no better or worse than any of the others. I wondered if the local enforcement officers had seen the program, but then I realised, the Local Authority in question were the enforcing authority. The adverse health effects of paddling around in raw sewage is well documented in history, that's why we now have sewage treatment systems instead of just throwing everything out in the street. So why do these Local Authorities allow their operatives to work in such an unsafe way?

Having said all that, the series about Sheffield was shot mainly on location in my son's bedroom!

Posted By Dave Wilson
Jim,

Didn't see it but if what you say is true then I would be very surprised if the Council workers did not have the propers equipment and tools to do this job in a safe manner.


When I worked the Dirty gang, waterptroof ovies, wellies, gloves, hard hat, mask and vaccinations etc.

Would this not be a prima facie case for prosecution and even internal disciplinary measures if the said equipment was not used.

Posted By Jason Gould
I can see this turning into a regula occurance with life of grime.

I failed to notice backhoe incident but was wonering what happened to the needles. Did they go into the skip in those bin liners etc. That flat was disgusting and I have the deepest reservations about the cleaning proccess.

Posted By Sean Fraser
Has anyone actually passed on these concerns to Bristol council?

Doesn't this hark back to previous threads which bemoan the manner in which H&S is portrayed in the media and advertising circles, either by belittling H&S policy decisions that are seen as ludicrous or by continually displaying photos/activities where safety has obviously either been ignored or worse, not even considered? At the time, we asked what we should do about it - in the case of a council that should know better, perhaps we should be engaging their PR department! But it should it be a local concern or can anyone join in?

What we seem to be saying here is that the statutory enforcement body doesn't apply the same MINIMUM standards on its own personnel that it does on those it is obliged to inspect. Yet another example of do what I say, not as I do . . .?

From previous responses I expect that any members challenging the transgressor can state that they are members of IOSH, but are not officially representing the Institution itself. Only our elected officers could reasonably claim to represent the body. But saying you are a member and are concerned at the way Bristol is being portrayed, not just because of the way it reflects on the Council itself but also the example it is setting, would add weight to the engagement. At the end of the day, all we would be doing is passing on a concern - only their own people can make a legal challenge should they be harmed.

I find these threads interesting, but I wonder how many of us are actually taking any form of action as a result.